The OECD Oslo Manual and the business model innovation concept

The last edition of Oslo Manual defines innovation as: «a new or improved product or process (or a combination thereof) that differs significantly from the unit's previous products or processes and that has been made available to potential users (product) or brought into use by the unit (process)» (^{OECD, 2018, p. 20}).

Business processes such as the logistical, production, marketing, co-operative arrangements in use, the main products that a firm sells, today or in the future, to achieve its strategic goals and objectives are the core of a business model. It depends on the firm using a single or several business models simultaneously (i.e., in different product lines or markets). The successful business models combine a method for better meeting the needs of users relative to what competitors can deliver and a profit formula for earning income from delivering utility to customers, according to the innovation management literature (^{OECD, 2018, par. 3.52}). There are three types of comprehensive Business Model Innovations (BMI) in existing firms:

In this research has been considered the adoption of those 3 BMI concepts and is aimed at the SST that supports the goals emitted by United Nations (^{UN, 2015}): «[…] it relates to changes in a firm's core business processes as well as in the main products that it sells, currently or in the future» (^{OECD, 2018, p. 242}).

The social impact startup in Mexico

Several online platforms are generating information about SST. For instance, AngelList (^{ANL, 2020}) the investors are using this database looking for information about startups for their decisions. Brazil occupies first place in several startups in Latin America, followed by Mexico. In Mexico, there are registered 416 startups, more than half are working with social interest (^{ASPEN, 2017}). They have distributed as a startup ecosystem in all the Mexican territory in three of the largest cities of the country, according to ^{OECD (2016, p. 2)}: Mexico City, 32 %, Guadalajara City, 10 %, and Monterrey, 8 %.

The startups are also known as technology based-firms and represent projects that are born from the detection of needs such as marketing knowledge, which is applied to provide market or industry solutions. A startup is usually defined as a new business initiated by an entrepreneur through a combination of business ideas and resources. A startup is a temporary organization that aims to search for scalable and repeatable business models (^{Blank & Dorf, 2012}).

Startups are organizations established to create new services or products under highly uncertain conditions, including new government business units, large companies, non-profit organizations, and commercial enterprises (^{Ries, 2011}). Their articulation and sophistication usually originate within a higher education institution because of their ability to carry out basic and applied research (^{Monge-Aguero & Briones-Peñalver, 2012}).

However, exists one common problem among the SST: they usually fail. Hence, our research is aimed to determine how the different factors are involved as KSF under female management as a business model innovation design that responds quickly, delivers value, and adapts to the rapid market changes (^{Hillenbrand, 2020}).

Sadly, the COVID-19 pandemic was the main reason for the loss of 12.5 million jobs in Mexico (^{El Financiero, 2020}). However, several new SST has reacted quickly, with innovative attitude and flexibility to the pandemic in digital education, health and medical services and goods (^{OECD, 2020}). The shift from the automation and digitization revolution to the next normal has triggered and accelerated (39 % to 58 % of work worldwide) by the COVID-19 pandemic and the next normal (^{Ellingrud et al., 2020}).

The female role management at SST

Men mainly use the indicators of financial performance to measure success (^{Moore & Buttner 1997}). Differences in performance perception could explain entrepreneurial motivation differences (^{Pardo-del-Val, 2010}) based on gender differences (^{Dafna, 2008}). The entrepreneurial idea itself could be one of the main stimuli for many female entrepreneurs, not the economic achievement (^{Dhaliwal, 2009}). Regarding personal goals, female entrepreneurs have higher evaluations of personal achievement, self-challenge, and personal vision than men. On the opposite, men rated higher both financial security and building great wealth and confidence (^{Shaw et al., 2009}).

Despite all the above, some studies point out no gender difference in firms' performance (^{Johnsen & McMahon, 2005}); other studies show that is gendered organizational performance. For instance, according to ^{Shaw et al. (2009)}, the owned by women are less successful than owned by men.

The companies owned by women are making relevant contributions to innovation. They are the fastest-growing groups, with wealth creation and employment among entrepreneurs' populations of all economies worldwide (^{Demartini, 2018}). The women's companies have provided self-employed response measures to overcome the crisis-hit, such as the COVID-19 pandemic and the next normal phenomena, individual economies, and negative impacts.

On another side, the financial performance indicators are mainly used by men to measure success (^{Moore & Buttner, 1997}). Differences in performance perception could explain entrepreneurial motivation differences (^{Pardo-del-Val, 2010}) based on gender differences (^{Dafna 2008}). The entrepreneurial idea itself could be one of the main stimuli for many female entrepreneurs, not the economic achievement (^{Dhaliwal, 2009}). Regarding personal goals, female entrepreneurs have higher evaluations of personal achievement, self-challenge, and personal vision than men (^{Shaw et al., 2009}).

However, it is not unanimously accepted the relationship between differences in gender and performance (^{Aldás-Manzano et al., 2012}). Women-owned businesses are not more likely to fail than men; moreover, they are even as successful. Stubborn, aggressive, self-confident, independent, and other stereotyped male behaviors, coupled with the masculinity of entrepreneurship, have brought severe difficulties to women who wish to engage in entrepreneurial activities (^{Ahl, 2002}). Constant comparison eventually becomes a trap. Researchers and society often ignore the diversity and complexity of female entrepreneurs, and women become «victims of male norms» (^{Billing, 2011, p. 1}).

In the traditional view of women's inferiority complex in entrepreneurship, other studies have challenged pointing out that women's and men's companies will not show significant performance differences under the same initial resources (^{Johnsen & McMahon, 2005}).

There are still gender gaps and income disparities in most societies; for instance, the management experience related to the businesses tends to be less in women (^{Coughlin & Thomas, 2002}). According to the empirical evidence, female managers spend more time on social goals and pay less for economic goals than men (^{Jennings & Brush, 2013}).

Women have advantages in several management functions, which will lead to higher performance (^{Aldás-Manzano et al., 2012}). Other empirical studies show no significant difference in performance between female and male entrepreneurs, with management performance and attitudes corresponding in many features (^{Menzies et al., 2004}).

By giving greater diversity, not only in terms of gender but also in terms of «products, processes, organizational forms, and target markets» increasing female entrepreneurs' level can improve the quality of entrepreneurs (^{Verheul et al., 2006}). The existence of female entrepreneurs and their firms achieve social goals benefits in regional communities (^{Hanson, 2009}). However, if the SST ecosystem fails to activate the male and female workforce successfully, they may not be able to reach their full potential. More and more governments adopt direct public policies to stimulate entrepreneurial activities in regional or metropolitan areas (^{Vogel, 2013}). The main reason is that these areas can promote entrepreneurial societies' creation (^{Hechavarria & Ingram, 2014}).

The COVID-outcomes are systematically better in countries led by female management, and, to some extent, this may be explained by the proactive and coordinated policy responses adopted by them (^{Garikipati & Kambhampati, 2020}). There is considerable evidence that COVID-19 has an uneven effect on women and diverse groups; however, female management in SST is more likely to be found in services industries than in manufacturing or technology. These sectors are bearing the brunt of disruption even they tend to be smaller, with fewer employees and less likely to be incorporated, because they tend to become self-employed (^{WEKH, 2020}). Several actions are suggested to policymakers to stimulate the growth of female management in SST, based more on solving their financial issues (^{ITC, 2020}). Counseling women on the implications of sector choice during the initial SST phase may improve women's business outcomes in the medium term (^{GIL, 2021}).

The final conceptual framework proposal of KSF for SST

This work extends the ^{Mejía-Trejo (2021a)} framework focused on analyzing female management as KSF for SST. The framework comprises 6 factors and 30 variables around BMI described in the form of a questionnaire (see Appendix). A path diagram shows six sets of constructs with intersections around the KSF depicting our proposed model. See Figure 1.

Note: BMI: Business model innovation for KSF-SST under gender management. EPR: Entrepreneur Profile. MKK: Market Knowledge. STA: Strategic Analysis. KPI: Key Performance Indicators. BPL: Business Plan. VPN: Value Proposition. EPS: Entrepreneur personality. ECB: Entrepreneur category of business. EEX: Entrepreneur experience. EMT: Entrepreneur Motivation. MKN: Market Needs. MPS: Product/Service Attributes. MMV: Market Management by Values. MSZ: Market Size. SCA: Competitor Analysis. SPS: Product / Service Design. SCP: Cost/Price. SBM: Business Model. SMO: Managerial Orientation. SIS: Innovation Strategy. STE: Technology Strategy. STS: Type of society. KIL: Product/Service Innovativeness with Value Added Level. KIP: Implementing Performance of Business Plan. KSI: Social Impact by Products / Services. KRI: Satisfaction of Product / Service Level. KCP: Customer Profitability. BFN: Financial Plan. BOM: Operation Maintenance & Emergency Plan. BIP: Intellectual property plan; BAC. Accountability plan; BDM. Digital marketing plan BAS. Aftersales plan. VDE. Value Delivery. VCR: Value Creation. VCA: Value Capture.

Source: ^{Mejía-Trejo (2021a)}

Figure 1 BMI framework as KSF-SST under gender management underlying factors. 

The BMI here follows the OECD definitions as:

They can have substantial effects on supply chains and economical production, transforming markets and potentially creating new ones. They can influence how a firm creates utility for users (product innovation) and how products are produced, brought to market, or priced (business process innovations) (2018, par. 3.53).

The BMI is described with 6 factors / 30 variables, as follows (^{Mejía-Trejo, 2021a}):

The six constructs' set produces the main outcome reason for our interest, the KSF for SST. Five constructs are the causal conditions (underlying factors) aligned to predict the outcome. These five sets of causal conditions factors are Entrepreneur Profile (EPR); Market Knowledge (MKK); Strategic Analysis (STA); Business Performance Indicators (KPI), and the Business Plan (BPL).

The study seeks to link the two research streams: the Key Success Factors (KSF) and the female management at the SST, theoretically supporting each stream. Hence, based on the literature, we have a business model innovation design:

H: «There is not one and only configuration of EPR, MKK, STA, KPI, and BPL sufficient for explaining high KSF. Instead, several equally effective configurations of underlying causal factors exist under SST female or male management that elicits business model innovation design for the next normal».

Theoretical implications

This paper contributes to the knowledge through the Business Model Innovation (BMI) framework that reveals Key Success Factors (KSF) in Social Impact Startups (SST), and business strategies under gender management towards the next normal. Thereby, we have three important contributions:

First. How are interacting such variables according to the female management that elicits strategies business for SST in the next normal. The findings show that these five factors are present in all five solutions (2 male / 3 female management), suggesting that they are a sort of core factors as KSF (see Table 1).

Second. The conditions obtained show that the SST requires more information and training about how the factors are implemented. For instance, the absence values of presence reported about key Strategic Analysis (STA) for female management and the Key Performance Indicators (KPI) for male management (seeTable 1). Besides, in fsQCA, different combinations are analysed to get the same outcome («equifinality»), generally understood as alternate causal paths or «recipes» Hence, as business model innovation design: H.  «There is no one configuration of EPR, MKK, STA, KPI, BPL, VPN sufficient for explaining KSF. Instead, several equally effective configurations of underlying causal factors exist under SST female or male management that elicits business model innovation design for the next normal». It is affirmative (see Table 1), being the best combination for female and male management as follows:

A) Solution 1 for female management is characterized for high-level presence of EPR or STA absence or medium-level presence of factors MKK, KPI, BPL or no matter the level of presence of VPN including the configuration of solution 2 with the high-level presence of EPR or medium values of KPI or VPN or no matter the level presence of MKK or the absence of STA or BPL. These solutions explain several cases of KSF-SST as BMI activities under female management ranging from 60 % to 65 % (see raw coverage in Table 1). Hence, the expression in Boolean algebra is:

B) Solution 1 for male management is characterized by the high level presence of EPR or STA, or VPN or KPI absence, or medium-level presence of factors MKK or BPL; including the configuration of solution 2 with the high-level presence of EPR or VPN, or absence of KPI or medium-level presence values of MKK or BPL, or no matter the level presence of STA; including also the solution 3, with the medium level presence of EPR or MKK or VPN, the absence or value presence of KPI or BPL or no matter the level presence of STA. These solutions explain several cases of KSF-SST as BMI activities under male management ranging from 66 % to 83 % (see raw coverage in Table 1). Hence, the expression in Boolean algebra is:

C) The patterns of complex antecedent conditions are consistent indicators of KSF-SST as BMI activities, with overall solution consistency and coverage of 0.78 and 0.82 (female management) and 0.77 and 0.85 (male management).

D) The theoretical significance of this research comes from the novel approach and methodology adopted and described above. Most SST studies are variance-based methods that assume that the relationship is «symmetric» among variables. Indeed, the relationships among variables are relatively more «asymmetric» (^{Fiss, 2011}).

Third. Based on Table 1, the relationship KSF-SST for BMI in the case of female management needs to develop the factors Strategic Analysis (STA); Business Plan (BPL); Market Knowledge (MKK); Key Performance Indicators (KPI), and Value Proposition (VPN). Male management, for another side, the Key Performance Indicators (KPI); Strategic Analysis (STA); Business Plan (BPL); Market Knowledge (MKK). For both cases, the Entrepreneur Profile (EPR) is strongly present («core condition»), and additionally (VPN) for male management.

Practical implications

The research findings provide valuable implications for academics, professional practitioners of gender studies, and innovation activities. Based on demographic data (50 % of female presence), there are relevant opportunities for female entrepreneurship, highlighting their education, optimism for the future, and the access to be funded in a similar situation to male management. Besides, our study suggests several indicators be considered in future studies, as gender-based difference. The findings present intricate patterns among these factors and how the asymmetric relationships empirically determine the same outcome. This study contributes and extends the knowledge and applications of fsQCA in Mexico, aimed to explain several conditions or relationships of the startup according to the special conditions of a specific country.

Our research's novelty is the combination of the factors identified in the final empirical model. The BMI underlying factors EPR, MKK, STA, KPI, BPL, and VPN could be adopted as innovation design to generate business strategies and, by extension, useful to the firms economically affected by emergency context (like COVID-19 pandemic and the next normal) in emergent countries and highlighting the KSF in SST and the relevant role of the female / male management in the theoretical field towards the next normal.

Limitations and future studies

First. The SST is a source of information depending on the type of industry and sector. Not all SST (services or products) provide information under identical conditions and times due to their nature to fail.

Second. The results consisted of an SST as COVID-19 pandemic survivors in the 2021 second half. Further studies could combine other economic, social, and optimistic health conditions to probe other kinds of results, for instance, the Olympiads, the soccer World Cup, the UEFA Euro, etc., and what is happening in emergent countries.

Third. Future female / male management studies about KSF may also lead to different issues such as the grouping of CEO by age generation (X, Y, Z), regions, countries, education, incomes, public policies of gender, status family (divorce, couple, etc.), SST type, etc. aboard. Furthermore, different female roles may be included, such as decisions about becoming a mother, getting in a couple, the pregnancy, etc.